Reports concerning aggression of people who have fearful attachment style have been inconsistent. Some noted higher aggression of the fearful, but others reported aggression no higher than those of other attachment styles. The purpose of this study was to examine the possibility that aggression of the fearful was repressed, and that self-defensive aspect of aggression in particular was implicated. The Picture Frustration Study (P-F Study) and Japanese version of Relationship Questionnair (RQ) were used as the measures of aggression and attachment styles, respectively. Data from 206 women, graduate and undergraduate students, were analyzed. Results showed that the fearful repressed aggression at the latent level, and they repressed self-defensive aspect of aggression more than other attachment styles. It was argued that inconsistency in previous studies stemmed from examining different aspects or phases in repression of aggression.
Key words: fearful attachment style, aggression, repression, Picture Frustration Study (P-F Study)